Be careful what you wish for!

Okay, my shameless self-promotion of my birthday paid off in a pretty big way this past weekend. I had enough fun this year to make up for staying home last year and staying home next year on the 5th annual celebration of my 29th if I so choose (doubtful, I know, but it could happen). I am, however, completely exhausted from an overload of fun. I'm not even going to complain about getting old, but I will say that I need more than 6 hours of sleep in a 48-hour span of time these days.

Friday night I went to dinner with a couple of girlfriends. Originally, we really thought it would be a relatively early night since we were just going to dinner. But that plan kind of flew out the window after the first bottle of wine and we hadn't even left my house yet. A few thoughts from Friday night:
* Every once in awhile, there will be a random guy in a parking lot with a flashlight to come to the rescue when you accidentally dump your entire brand new PINK purse (birthday gift compliments of Melanie and AJ) when getting out of the car.
* Bang-bang shrimp at Bonefish Grille is fabulous. And very fun to say.
* After-dinner coffee drinks apparently make me want to call people and insist on going to Joe's Bar & Grill on 96th Street.
* Those Hypnotiq glow-sticks are cool beyond their intended use in martinis.
* Meeting up with friends who happen to be police officers can be fun. It can also be trouble when they are used to working the night shift and not going to bed until the crack of dawn. Even worse when they like to drink.
* Shots are a really bad idea. Really. Bad. Idea.
* I kept AJ up all night before she had to catch a flight for a business trip early Saturday morning. She wasn't mad. She totally rocks.

So, suffice it to say, I was a running ragged Saturday but had little time to rest. I had plans to meet my parents for an early lunch and then drive up to Muncie to commence birthday celebrating all over again with Kelly P. and Kelly, and later on with Kelly P.'s fun boss, Doug. I headed up to Muncie in the afternoon, pretending to not be reaping the punishment from those shots, not tired, and totally cheerful in an attempt to avoid being lectured by the Kellies. It was to no avail - they both lectured me for not saving up my fun for Saturday night. I assured them repeatedly that I would be fine. I would be more than fine. I was FUN. And so we were. A few more thoughts from Saturday night:
* I don't think I have ever laughed so much or so hard in my entire life. I seriously almost wet my pants more than once. According to one of the Kellies, that would have been just fine because it was fun, "fun" being the buzzword of the night.
* Muncie Mardi Gras is a pretty good time, and you don't have to show anything to get beads.
* I still have remnants of glitter in my hair. That stuff doesn't wash out easily, does it?
* Doug rocks for many reasons, but one being that his firm picked up our dinner tab and he acted as our personal chauffeur. He is fabulous. I adore him.
* Reading the directions to your new digital camera would probably be useful unless you prefer the speed mode.
* Wearing stupid shoes on purpose forfeits the right to bitch (too much) about them.
* How does someone lose her purse behind a couch at a bar??
* Spilling French martinis all over the front of yourself apparently causes a seriously sticky mess.
* Parrothead martinis come in more than one color, but the green ones are sooooo good.
* Finding $20 on the ground makes some people giddy for hours.
* Kelly has the greatest stories, the most fun secrets, and knows how to buy perfect birthday presents.
* The night wasn't over until we all fell down.
* We really could have made it to Sunday morning mass if we had tried hard enough. I should have put money on that bet.

Yep, I had lots of fun. Life is good!